Chapter 3: The New Recruit

It was in the early morning that Alexius entered the Imperial Bastion. A massive fortress that dominated one of the greater islands among of the Imperial City. High stone walls loomed over any that would approach its heavy iron gates, the towers even higher still. Arrow slits and murder holes peppered the walls and gatehouse, any attacking force seeking to take the gate would surely meet arrow and oil and fire and stone. As Alexius passed through the gates, he found himself within a wide yard, a killing field should it ever come to that, which itself laid before another set of walls and another great gatehouse set atop a set of stairs.

It was clear to see that this was the heart of the Legion's operations within the city. Some guardsmen were doing morning exercises in the yard, some practicing their archery and others playing at hand-to-hand combat. But beyond that, there was a bustle of activity as the guards changed shifts, and fresh squads of soldiers made off to police the city while the exhausted night shift retired. A haphazard crowd gathered at the steps before the secondary gatehouse, their lack of uniform marked them out to be the new batch of recruits.

Alexius made to join them, but was rudely shoved aside by a tall and mean looking orc.

"Out of the way, small fry." The man sneered at him; drool dripped from his yellowed tusks. His beady eyes narrowed before he moved on. "Make room for the real warrior."

Alexius tensed up; his breath came quick and shallow. His brow furrowed and he glared at the orc's back. But as Alexius was about to go charging after the bastard, a hand gripped his shoulder.

"Relax. You wouldn't want to start a fight right before you're officially sworn into the legion, would you?" A raven-haired young man with a faded cut dangerously near his eye said, before releasing Alexius' shoulder. "That was Bruz, Bruz gro Mallak, he's a real bully that one, I'd steer clear of him. I'm Vincent by the way."

Alexius took in the man, he seemed of an age with Alexius. Vincent's clothes were shabby, and his hair seemed to be getting a tad too long.

"Thanks, Vincent." Alexius began. "I probably would have gotten myself into trouble." He added ruefully, giving the lad a smile. "My names Alexius, you can call me Alek. All my friends do."

"Pleasure to meet you Alek, but if we're getting familiar, then please, call me Vince."

You've run into him before?" Alexius jerked his head towards Bruz, who was now shoving his way into the crowd before the inner bastion's steps.

"Unfortunately, a real brute that one. Acted the same way back in the Waterfront, for as long as I can remember. Word is, he used to run with Shady Sam's gang, bunch of thugs and skooma dealers." Vincent stared past him, looking to were Bruz had disappeared. "They're a menace on this city. Half the reason I decided to join up was to get away from them."

"And the other half?" Alexius asked.

"I lived in the Waterfront." Vince said plainly, as if that was all that needed to be said. Seeing Alexius' quizzical look, he continued. "Most of us are, it's a… poorer district. And the Watch doesn't give it nearly enough attention. The poor and jobless, those who were fresh off the boat hoping to find their fortune in the big city but found little in the way of prospects, those looking to escape the dirt or the danger of home, we've all come to the last refuge. The great Imperial Legion will accept any able-bodied man or woman, it's our way out."

Alexius regarded the man's cut once more.

"A couple decades of service and I can retire with a small plot of land and some gold. A better future than most of us have in the Waterfront." Vince finished. "And you? What's your story?"

"I'm from out west, a farm outside Kvatch was my home." Alexius paused, unsure and unwilling to say more. "My… Well, bandits drove me from my home. I'm here to start a new life."

"Say no more, we all have ghosts in our past we'd rather not talk about." Vincent frowned; his hand drifted towards the cut below his eye. It hovered there for a moment, before Vince caught himself and brought his hand back down to his waist.

Alexius made to say more, but stopped short when he caught sight of a soldiers gathering atop the steps in front of the crowd. They were hard to make out from Alexius' place in the back, but the quieting of the other recruits, and the fact that these individuals wore full Legion regalia made it clear that the time had come.

"Alright, fall in lads! It's time to get you all situated." One of them yelled out. "That's right, you too, you lazy cat." The soldier called to a Khajiit off to the side, who bristled and growled, but fell in all the same.

When the crowd looked organized enough, the soldier nodded to another who, by the looks of things, was the commanding officer.

"Good morning, everyone. I am Prefect Giovanni Civello. It is an honor, and a pleasure, to see so many who wish to dedicate themselves to the service of the Empire." The stout man began. "In a moment, I will be leading you through the formal oath, after which you will all officially become soldiers within the Legion. But just before that, my lieutenant here will be marking down your names. When your name is called, step forward to receive your official papers as well as your basic kit and uniform. Be forewarned, the cost of your equipment is deducted from your initial salary. Any necessary replacements will also be deducted from your pay. Don't lose your papers! On them, you'll have your unit and your assigned commanding officer. After the oath, they will lead you out of the city to your training grounds, to make proper soldiers of you."

Prefect Civello gave a nod to his lieutenant, who promptly began calling out names. When Alexius' name was called, he shuffled forward, thinking about what he was truly dedicating himself to. As Alexius worked his way up the steps, he pictured the hard service in his future. Service at the whims of others. Work that lasted years, decades even, and had no promise of safety. When he was handed his papers and his pack, they felt far heavier than they should.

"You'll do fine, son." The prefect said to him, noticing his pause. Alexius schooled himself and got back into order.

As the list of names was concluded, the prefect spoke up once more.

"In joining the Legion, you are making an oath to serve the Emperor, the Empire, and all its citizens. You must be prepared to make this commitment. If you are not, then step forward now and relinquish your papers."

No one stepped forward. Alexius wondered if it was as Vincent said, and these men had nowhere else to go.

"I'll now lead you through the oath." The yard was deathly silent now. "Repeat after me"

"On my honor." A crescendo of out of sync voices echoed the prefect.

"I do swear undying loyalty to the Emperor, Uriel Septim VII." The crowd rumbled through the oath.

"And unwavering obedience to the officers of his great Empire." The crowd somewhat less enthusiastically followed that line.

"May those above judge me, and those below take me, if I fail in my duty."

'Would the gods truly watch over us?' Alexius wondered at that.

"Long live the Emperor! Long live the Empire!" The prefect finished; the other soldiers joined in with the recruits now.

"I'm sure you'll all make fine soldiers in the years to come. May you all make the Empire proud, and may the Nine protect you. Sergeants, form ranks and fall out!"

As that order came, a dozen soldiers leapt into action and began calling names and shoving their way through the crowd. Alexius fell in with his assigned unit, and was pleased to see Vincent was in the same unit. Alexius was less pleased to see Bruz fall in behind him, Alek's eyes narrowed at bully, and he received yet another snarl thrown his way.

"Good to see you all can follow the most basic of orders!" Their assigned officer declared over the other shouts as he began introducing himself. "I'm Sergeant Quenton Vede. I'll be leading you all out of the city now, stay close behind me! We have a fort just outside the city where we train the new recruits, Fort Nikel. Commandant Ramillus Vitellius is in charge there, but you'll be taking most of your orders from instructors and your squad's sergeant, that means me!"

The man launched into his introduction of how things would work as Alexius and his squamates followed him out of the bastion and through the streets of the city. The citizens they passed on the road didn't seem to care much for the boisterous sergeant or the shambling march of the recruits, it was apparently a common enough occurrence here.

The sun was high in the sky now, as they left the splendor of the city isles behind and made their way across the great bridge to the mainland, passed the bustling town of Weye, and walked more than marched into the rolling countryside up to Fort Nikel. It was a large fortress, Alexius supposed it should be, being on the approach to the Imperial City. It commanded the intersection of the main thoroughfares of the northside of Rumare and the Black Road to Chorrol. Alexius had expected something grand and impressive, much like the Imperial City itself, but the great outer walls were crumbling. The fortress looked half a ruin. Could such a place hold off an enterprising group of bandits, let alone an attacking army?

Alexius had made to ask Sergeant Quenton, but was interrupted as the man greeted the guards at the gate. As they entered through the walls, Alexius found the inner camp of the fort far less disappointing the outside. Orderly rows of tents lined the paths, cook fires already started by some enterprising soldiers, a rough sparring arena set up for the recruits, an archery range, men marching in formation or hopping to work as their sergeants bellowed orders. Everything with a purpose, and nothing in the way. It all looked far more worthy of the professional reputation of the Legion than the outer wall appeared.

"Now then, a legionnaire needs to be able to care for themselves!" Quenton tossed Alexius another pack, his hands already close to full, he nearly fumbled it. Bruz gave a curt laugh. "Careful with that now, it's the tent you'll be staying in together. Each of your kits has an individual tent for when you're on the march, but the Commandant believes its best to keep the recruits together, team building or something to that affect."

Alexius wasn't sure what to make of that, having to share a tent with Bruz of all people.

"Well? On with it then, set up your tent! Here should be fine," the sergeant pointed to an open space among the other tents, "third recruit century has this row."

Alexius and his squad scrambled to put together their tent, their sergeant screaming at them the whole time to convey his instructions.

"Faster!"

"No, no, no! That's the outer tent!"

"Don't forget the guy line! It's going to blow right over!"

"The tarp goes on top of the tent!"

As they fumbled their way through the instructions, they eventually made a halfway decent tent. But Sergeant Quenton didn't give them any rest.

"Battle dress uniforms on, quickly now, they're in your pack. We're going on a short run!"

A 'short' run, turned into a grueling marathon where they carried their entire kit. And by its end, Alexius was drenched in sweat and his chest ached from breathing and the pounding of his heart. As they drew back to Fort Nikel, the sergeant led them up to the small lake beside it. Several recruits collapsed as they stopped, everyone rested their packs.

Alexius propped himself up on his knees, trying in vain to catch his breath. The orc bastard sidled up alongside him.

"Tired out already? Maybe you aren't cut out for the Legion." Bruz smirked at him, while wiping the sweat from his own brow.

Alexius glared at the man, but said nothing.

"Smell that fresh air," the sergeant said, "can't get that in the city."

No one bothered to say anything in response.

"We'll be going on more of these runs, every morning! Along with the other exercises, they'll get harder when we know you can handle it, or they'll weed you out. They're meant to condition you to meet the physical requirements of a true legionnaire!"

There was a collective groan from those who could manage it.

"None of that now! You'll grow to like these exercises! Now, we've got a nice lake here, and you all stink! It's time to wash up and make yourselves presentable for the Commandant, he likes to greet the new recruits on their first night.

The recruits did what little they could to make themselves presentable then trudged their way back up the hill to Fort Nikel. Alexius wanted to rest more than anything, but instead the recruits were made to line up at attention before their tents. Soon their appointed centurion announced the Commandant's arrival. The Commandant was an imperious and cold looking fellow. He held himself rigidly and there was an air of tension about the man, not the least evidenced by the set of his jaw.

"So, this is the lot the Empire's given me?" The Commandant began. "A bunch of wastrels and in-grates. Well, we'll soon cure you all of that. I am Commandant Ramillus Vitellius, I oversee Fort Nikel by order of Commander Adamus Phillida. He expects miracles of me, and I mean to meet those expectations."

There was a pause as the Commandant inspected the men, he paced down the line. "You'll all be with us for the next four months as we whip you into shape. Conditioning first, we'll teach you organization and war, what construction will be required of you, then arms. We'll give you the basics of the navy, for in the case of urgency. A select few of you will be trained for the cavalry, if you can manage it. We'll be pushing you hard now, harder than you've ever been pushed in your meritless lives. Once you're through it though, you'll be men of the Empire, truly worthy of representing the emperor on the battlefield! You put in the work, and I can promise you that."

"Century dismissed! Get your ration and then on to bed!" The centurion called.

Later that night, Alexius stumbled into his tent, legs aching. He was too worn out to even snipe as Bruz shouldered his way past. Alexius was vaguely aware of Vincent bidding him good night, but as soon as his head hit his sack, he was out like a light.

And I'm back with a short chapter. Crazy computer troubles resolved, life situations more or less resolved, story's outline and world's background built up, everything's good to go! I even updated a chapter on my Mount and Blade fic, which is almost entirely an inactive fandom for fanfic it seems. I know how to pick 'em! But at least I have quite a bit of fun writing it, and that's all that really matters.

So, now we have Alexius introduced to the Legion's boot camp, a little soldiery rivalry building up, and a new friend introduced. Decent start to the next phase in the story I think.

I sat on most of this chapter for quite a while, debating how much of the training I should actually get into, but then I decided to cast that die and develop it into a bit of a plotline itself. Keep the chapters short, but write several more chapters, I figure the idea is.

Anyway, I hope all you readers enjoy!